A few days late, certainly, but over the weekend we celebrated the
Chinese "mid-autumn" festival (it's actually spring here),
better known as the Moon Cake festival. Leading a group of young
children and adults with paper lanterns illuminated we set out to
wander the streets of Moonee Ponds and draw the stares of curious
neighbours.Admiration of the moon is one of the important features of this festival but while gazing up at the moon, one can only wonder how old Wu Kang is getting along.
Wu Kang was a shiftless but clever fellow who changed jobs constantly. He started out as a farmer but quickly grew bored and decided that farming was not enough of a challenge for him. So he apprenticed himself to a furniture maker but on being told by his master that in another three to five years, he would be able to make a reasonable furniture, he gave up. He then went to work in shop but again grew bored, so once again he gave up and decided instead to study to become an immortal.
Wu Kang went to live in the mountains where he begged an immortal to teach him. First the immortal taught him about the herbs used to cure sickness but after three days his characteristic restlessly returned and he asked the immortal to teach him something else. Therefore, the immortal tried to teach him chess but again after a short time his enthusiasm waned.
Wu Kang was then given the books of immortality to study. Naturally, Wu Kang became bored within a few days, and asked if they could travel to some new and exciting place. Angered with Wu Kang's impatience, the master banished Wu Kang to the Moon Palace telling him that he must cut down a huge cassia tree before he could return to earth.
Though Wu Kang chopped day and night, the magical tree grew back with each blow. Even now, If you look up at the face of the full moon, you will see him still chopping away at that cassia tree.